Welcome Back (Warriors 134, Clippers 127)

The Golden State Warriors went into the All-Star Break looking up to a team in the standings for the first time in a long time, and they had to spend what must have felt like an eternity enduring the national spotlight on their “subpar” season. Then, at the All-Star Game itself, Team Stephen (featuring three of the Dubs) came up short, with the eponymous captain getting shackled by LeBron James and Kevin Durant in the final seconds. You have to think that by the end of all the hoopla, the Warriors would be overjoyed to take the court for a game with real consequences again. With the business end of the NBA schedule firmly in their sights, the Warriors started their playoff push with a riveting 134-127 win over the new-look Los Angeles Clippers, who put up quite a fight before succumbing to the Dubs.

The Warriors’ first quarter malaise has been well documented, and it has undoubtedly cost them in the wins column. Steve Kerr, perhaps in an effort to enliven the period, inserted JaVale McGee into the starting lineup, the first of many moves that bucked pre-All-Star-break trends (the other moves were mainly rotational swaps). Energized by some combination of the Oracle home crowd, the hated Clippers being the opponents, JaVale’s presence in the starting 5, and excitement to resume the season, the Warriors finally started a game with energy and offensive precision. Barring a spate of three consecutive turnovers that forced Steve Kerr to call timeout, the Dubs were remarkably protective of the ball and far more measured on offense than we have grown accustomed to seeing. While there were some warts, namely JaVale’s inability to finish against DeAndre Jordan or keep him off the glass and a number of defensive lapses, the Warriors were vastly improved as compared to their recent first quarter performances. Good shots were passed up for great ones, the ball skipped around nicely, and when the dust settled, the Warriors had jumped out to an 11 point lead at the end of the first, capped by a miraculous Stephen Curry buzzer beater from near midcourt that was good the second it left his hand.

Basketball is a game of runs, and the second quarter was a back-and-forth affair that saw the Warriors’ lead creep up to as many as 18 points before the Clippers went on answering runs of their own, buoyed by newcomer Tobias Harris and stalwarts Danilo Gallinari and Lou Williams. The Warriors continued to shoot at an absurd percentage, but the Clippers, behind some timely offensive rebounding and sheer persistence, never went away, constantly remaining just within striking distance. After Curry thought he salted away the first half with yet another deep triple, Gallinari answered with a 50-foot heave that also found paydirt, and the 15 point Warriors lead was cut to a far more manageable 12. While the Warriors were engaged, to be frank, their defensive execution left quite a bit to be desired, particularly in the moments when the Clippers went on their runs.

In the third quarter, the Warriors’ typical time to feast, Stephen Curry embarked on one of those flurries that leaves you at a loss for words. Mixing long-range sniping with some dribbling wizardry and devilish takes to the hoop, Curry was in total control, tallying 18 points on 6-7 shooting in the period to go with 4 FTs, a rebound, and 3 assists. When Oracle senses its prodigal son heating up, there is a buzz in the building that is audible even on the CSN broadcast, a palpable feeling of infinite possibilities and the chance to witness something historic. And yet, despite Curry’s heroics, the Clippers just kept hanging around, taking advantage of second chance opportunities and capitalizing on the mistakes the Warriors made. The Warriors ended the third quarter still shooting over 65% from the field, and yet the Clippers won the third quarter by 2 and were only down 10 entering the fourth.

Things immediately got dicier, as the start of fourth quarter unit, anchored by the “Three Wise Men” in David West, Andre Iguodala, and Shaun Livingston, which was so critical in extending the lead in the second quarter, quickly allowed a 9-0 run that cut the lead to 2. Kerr proactively tossed Kevin Durant into the fray, and the Warriors leaned on their all-world superstar to bail them out while Curry got a needed breather, devolving their offense into crude, but highly effective, mismatch exploitation, isolation, and bullyball. The game would continue to be tighly contested until Stephen Curry re-entered the fray – he poured in another 11 points in the fourth, including a pair of back-breaking triples with under two minutes to play that sent the fans at Oracle home happy. The Warriors were buoyed by strong supporting performances by Klay Thompson (19 points, 8-14 shooting), Durant (24 points, 7-15 shooting, 3 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 blocks), Draymond Green (14 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, a block), and West (10 points, 4-4 shooting, 3 boards, 2 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block), but the backup shooting guard position remains a black hole. With Patrick McCaw out for the forseeable future, the onus falls on Nick Young to be productive, and he was decidedly not; between the slow-motion effort on defense and his shot not falling, Young was a team-worst -6 on the night and got picked on by the Clippers late.

After the game, Draymond Green was having none of the “step in the right direction” talk, vociferously defending the Warriors’ season thus far and insisting that they will be in peak form heading into the postseason. To a large degree, Draymond is right: the Warriors are 45-14 and continue to be one of the most feared teams in the league, a franchise that others aspire to emulate. However, as fans of this particular team, we’ve grown accustomed to a night-in, night-out level of execution that some would argue is unsustainable; Steve Kerr himself remarked that great teams “bring it” roughly 4 out of every 5 nights. Bearing all this context in mind, the Warriors did in fact take some steps towards the level of preparedness they’re hoping to carry with them into the playoffs. While the defense could still use some improvement, the Warriors finally showed some consistent engagement and focus, and this win is one I’ll feel good about until the Thunder come to town.